1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the key-pad operating mechanism of saxophone preventing inoperative conditions due to stickiness of the key-pad.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a saxophone comprises a body (main tube) 101 of a metal tube generally curved in a J-shape, as shown in FIG. 4.
The body 101 is connected on one end of it to a bell (opening) 102 expanding in a bell-shape, and to a crook (blow tube) 103 on the other end thereof. A mouthpiece 104 is detachably attached to the crook 103. A reed (not shown) is attached to the mouthpiece 104. When the player blows air into the mouthpiece 104, the reed vibrates. This vibration is transmitted through the body 101 and exits from tone holes O.sub.100 (see FIGS. 5, 6 and 7) and the bell 102.
The body 101 is normally provided with 18-25 tone holes O.sub.100 The player adjusts the pitch (of sound) by opening and closing appropriate key-pads K.sub.100 provided on the tone holes O.sub.100. The pitch is basically determined by the distances from the mouthpiece 104 to the tone holes O.sub.100. In other words, the further the opened tone holes O.sub.100 are from the mouthpiece 104, the pitch is lower, and the nearer, the higher. Of these tone holes O.sub.100, two tone holes O.sub.101 and O.sub.102 are the octave holes for generating harmonics. Other tone holes O.sub.100 are for generating semitones; generating a semitone change when a tone hole is opened or closed.
Various mechanisms have been devised historically to operate these key-pads K.sub.100 including mechanisms for opening and closing as well as levers and such for connecting key-pads themselves, so that they can be operated with ten fingers of a player. These mechanisms are well established today. Therefore, it is said that any changes to the key-pad operating mechanism of the saxophone are not desirable from the standpoint of the easiness of playing, particularly the uniformity of fingering during a play. However, there shouldn't be any problem in improving the key-pad operating mechanism of the saxophone as long as the change does not cause any problems in playing and or changes in fingering.
The key-pads K.sub.100 are directly operated to open or close as shown in FIG. 5 via operating levers L.sub.100 which are generally operated by fingers. The operations of these operating levers L.sub.100 are transmitted through actuating levers M.sub.100. A key-pad K.sub.100, as shown in FIG. 5, has a relatively soft pad 111 that comprises a paperboard 107, a felt disc 108, a leather pouch 109 that covers them, and a reflection plate 110, and is contained in a skirt section 106a of a cap body 106, to which an operating lever L.sub.100 is attached. The pad 111 is glued with adhesive 112 to the cap body 106. In order to close a tone hole O.sub.100, the soft pad 111 seats nicely on a seat Oa.sub.100 formed upward on the edge of the tone hole O.sub.100.
The key-pads K.sub.100 of the saxophone are basically divided into normally open and normally closed key-pads. The normally open key-pad Kno.sub.100 is kept away normally from the corresponding tone hole O.sub.100 to maintain an opened condition by means of the spring force of a spring 114 that acts on the corresponding lever L.sub.100, while the normally closed key-pad Knc.sub.100 is kept normally contacting the corresponding tone hole O.sub.100 to maintain a normally closed condition.
The normally closed key-pad Knc.sub.100, as shown in FIG. 6, is attached with a lever L.sub.100, which is designed to rotate around a fulcrum 115 on a support pillar P.sub.100 erected on the body 101. Moreover, a base end 114a of the spring 114 is affixed to the vicinity of the pad 111, while the other end 114b is extended beyond the support pillar P.sub.100 to the side of a pressing part 116 of the operating lever L.sub.100 to contact the body 101. Consequently, when the normally closed key-pad Knc.sub.100 is pressed in the direction of an arrow Da as shown in the diagram against the spring force of the spring 114, the pad 111 rotates in the direction of an arrow Db to open the tone hole O.sub.100. Also, the normally closed key-pad Knc.sub.100 normally maintains its closed position with the pad 111 seated on the tone hole O.sub.100 due to the spring force 114.
The normally open key-pad Kno.sub.100 is equipped with two support pillars P.sub.100 and P.sub.100 erected on the body 101 as shown in FIG. 7. The normally open key-pad Kno.sub.100 is further equipped with two operating levers La.sub.100 and Lb.sub.100 so that they can rotate around fulcrums 115a and 115b on the supporting pillars P.sub.100 and P.sub.100. Abase end 117a of a spring 117 is affixed to the rear end of a front operating lever La.sub.100. The other end 117b of the spring 117 is extended beyond the pillar P.sub.100 to contact the body 101. When this normally open key-pad Kno.sub.100 is operated by pressing a pressing part 116 of an operating lever Lb.sub.100 resisting the spring force of the spring 117 in the direction of the arrow Da shown in the drawing, the pad 111 rotates in the direction of the arrow Dc to close the tone hole O.sub.100. The normally open key-pad Kno.sub.100 normally keeps the pad 111 in an open position relative to the tone hole O.sub.100 due to the spring force of a spring 117.
Now, the pad 111 of the key-pad K.sub.100 comprises, as mentioned before, the baseboard 107, felt 108 and leather pouch 109 which are all humidity absorbing materials, so that they can easily absorb moisture from the environment and cause stickiness. Moreover, when this wetness attracts dirt, it tends to cause the pad Ill to stick to the seat Oa.sub.100 of the tone hole O.sub.100 and makes it difficult to be released. This gives the player an impression that it is an instrument difficult to play, and affects the performance as well.
In playing a saxophone, sometimes the music is of a slow tempo, but sometimes it is of a quick tempo. When playing quick tempo music, the pressing of the operating levers L.sub.100 that activate key-pads K.sub.100 is done with a light touch. As a result, if the pads 111 are sticking to the seats Oa.sub.100, the pads 111 fail to operate properly or become inoperative and cause improper sounds resulting in a bad performance even though the player precisely plays the saxophone.
Particularly, even a single occurrence of inactivity of a key-pad K.sub.100, if it occurs during a professional's playing, can adversely affect the performance that follows and the integrity of the entire music.
This tendency of causing inoperative conditions is such that the conditions can occur either with the normally open or normally closed key-pads. However, the tendency is more conspicuous with normally closed key-pads Knc.sub.100. Since a normally open key-pad Kno.sub.100 has more air flow through the area in question, it tends to cause less sticking of its pad 111. In other words, a normally closed key-pad Knc.sub.100 is normally in contact with the seat Oa.sub.100 of the tone hole O.sub.100, so that there is very little air flow through it except when it is opened in playing or in maintenance. Therefore, the pad 111 tends to absorb moisture and attracts dirt, thus causing it to be sticky and making the pad 111 difficult to be removed from the seat Oa.sub.100 of the tone hole O.sub.100.
More specifically, a saxophone has key-pads K.sub.100 for sounds such as A, B, B.sup..music-flat., C, C.sup..music-sharp., D, E, F, F.sup..music-sharp., G, G.sup..music-sharp., low C.sup..music-sharp., low B, and low Bb, of which the normally closed key-pads Knc.sub.100 are low C.sup..music-sharp. and G.sup..music-sharp. key-pads. Of these, the G.sup..music-sharp. key-pad, the most typical normally closed key-pad Knc.sub.100, tends to become inoperative most frequently. This G.sup..music-sharp. key-pad is located in the middle of the vertical array of key-pads on a saxophone, and is operated most often, so that professional players are most concerned about its performance.